If you would like to have a little bit more space or open area, we can give you, actually we can put some chairs for you out there, Or you can sit in that room, which I prefer to have it for the ladies who have small children.

The meeting room, there are a lot of chairs in there.

They can use the chairs, they can use whatever they want, and keep the area here very quiet.

And I always say it was our mothers who brought us here.

Fathers and mothers brought us to these kind of gatherings.

So if you have a child you can't control, please, I'm gonna get a couple of our ladies to go upstairs And if you have really small babies infants, and they may cry or if they cry here immediately, please Take him to the that room and quiet him down because I really hate to become I mean disturbing you and they're Coming walking in the in your area.

So if you do it yourself so we don't have to come in and help you with that.

Tomorrow we have, so the doors please, they're going to be kept closed and sorry for the inconvenience, you know we have security guards out from this side, they're protecting you, Alhamdulillah.

And we don't want to open the doors just for that for right now.

And tomorrow we have the ladies' meeting here that is led by our sister, Kazvini.

Inshallah, it's gonna be starting from as usual as last week actually, last weekend from 11 to 1 p.m.

And the youth were telling me that they have a youth program of Q&A from 3 to 5 p.m.

And if you have any question regarding that, our brother here, mashallah, this young good man, he's gonna be giving you some information about that.

Ali Daya, he's 1 of the best we have here, MashaAllah.

He's going to give you some more information on that.

And the masks, please observe because you know we have to close these doors for Monday which is Ashura Day.

We might have to open the doors and we are going to bring some security guards over there to guard us and we probably, most probably, it's going to be probably almost sure to bring some carpets out there.

Those of you who would like to sit in fresh air, it's gonna be there and we're gonna put a speaker over there for you.

If you wanna get a good spot in this room, You need to be here around 930 or maybe before that.

So having that said and our programs are continued inshallah till the coming Tuesday, Tuesday night.

Muharram day our program is going to start 10 a.m.

And will end by the Dhor and Asr prayer and food will be served and we have the same day actually Monday we have at night time we have a program Tuesday night we have a program it's going to be the end of our program for Muharram this year.

For those of you who would like to follow with me, the recitation of the Holy Quran, I'm going to be reciting Surat Al-Hadeed from Ayah number 17, maybe 4 or 5 small ayahs inshallah.

name of Allah, the most gracious, the most merciful.

They know that Allah gives life to the earth after death.

I will read the verses for you, so that you

And they have loaned Allah a loan of envy.

They will be multiplied for them and they shall have a generous reward.

who believed in Allah and His Messengers,

before their Lord, for them is their reward and their

And those who disbelieve and deny Our Signs, those are the people of the fire.

Ashabul Jaheem I'lamu annamal hayatu al-dunya al-'ib wa lahwu wazeena and pride among you, and abundance in wealth and children.

Wa maghfiratun min Allahi wa ritwanu wa ma hayatu al dunya illa mata'u al ghulub.

It has been prepared for those who believe in Allah and His Messengers.

That is the grace of Allah, which He gives to whomsoever He wills.

As-salāmu alaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh.

This beautiful ayat of Allah SWT in the holy Quran, It says that people be aware that it is us, or know that it is us who revive the land after it's dead.

And it goes to the people who give, the people who donate, the people who do sadaqat, give sadaqat, the people who help others, from men and women, musaddiqueen wal musaddiqati.

Allah, Subhanahu wa ta'ala, says for them, there is the best rewards.

And those who believe in Allah, Subhanahu wa ta'ala, and his prophets, and they are going to be Siddiqoon, the people who are on the right path at all times.

Washuhada, the martyrs, they have a great reward in Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la and a great position with them.

And here the most important, actually I've used this 2 or 3 verses before to get to this part of this.

Because this is directly related to our lives in today's time.

And every time, of course, but today's time is even more emphasized on this.

It says, اعلموا انما الحيات الدنيا Know that The life of this world is just la'adun wa lah.

Zina, the ornaments, and tafakkur, like boasting, I think it's called, yeah, between each other.

And, and getting more or working for more wealth and children.

And it gives an example, it says, it's just like when the rain comes and it grows the produce or the plants, And then later on you see it dries out and goes in the air.

These things Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la says we need to be careful of.

In order to lead a good life, What we need to do is to make sure that this material world is not going to catch us.

If we got in it too much, it's going to take us from our reality, our personality, just our soul pretty much.

And Allah at the end says, raise for Sabeq ila maghfirat min rabbikum.

Raise for forgiveness from your Lord so you can achieve what?

Arduha ka ardi al-samai wal-ard in this verse.

It's just the width of the Jannah, 1 of them, is as big as the whole earth and the whole sky or the whole heavens.

Which is prepared already by Allah subhanaw taala for those who believe in Allah subhanaw taala and his messengers sallallahu alayhi wa sallam tonight we are gonna have another 1 of our youth to be talking to us.

Salaam alaikum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh.

Brothers and sisters, today I have come to you to speak of Abu Fadil Abbas, alayhi salam.

And I'd like to open with a poem dedicated to him.

The words I try to write about your absence felt so incomplete, and so the lines were but stains of ink with no soul nor light.

For when your joyful heart refused to beat, mine laid down its pen and ceased to write.

Now here I am writing about a poem that was never decreed, a wordless poem guided by grief and veiled in my heart that never saw light.

My love for you is something that poetry fails to express, and my lips fail to speak.

Every tongue said that this life would turn you to a soul that is cold, and 1 that would be unable to smile or love again.

And against their claims that only wanted to keep you from being whole, you were forged by this very life into a flower that left no heart sane.

O he who watched over as the champions of Karbala fell, he who ached for Hussain a pain which you could not spell.

For the brave companions couldn't quell the thousands that stood with the devil's smell.

Flow onto the sands of Karbala and stain, flow into the hearts of believers and gain.

1 that was greater than any son, 1 that could be defeated by none, 1 that could take down the world, and then some.

Now, I wanted to talk about Abbas today because he was truly the epitome of loyalty and brotherhood.

During the last stand of Karbala, we see the way in which he cared for the women and children in a time which they needed him most.

This was best seen at the time in which he was asked by Hussein to get water for them, despite the fact that he considered Abbas to be his right-hand man, his standard-bearer, his closest companion on the day in which he had no helping hand.

Abbas was killed on his way back from the river and with his fall, Hussein spoke of how his back had been broken by the loss of his brother.

Up until his last moments, Abbas maintained his loyalty towards his brother, but more importantly, towards fighting against tyranny and oppression.

As we all know, Abbas was buried in Karbala alongside Hussain, and 1400 years after his passing, he's still considered to be the greatest of supporters, the strongest of soldiers, and the most virtuous of characters.

Today Abbas is revered by millions around the world and seen as a hero figure representing courage and loyalty.

To the Muslims, Abbas is known in many different ways as the Lion of Ali, the Hero of Karbala, the Flag Bearer of Hussein, the Beloved Brother of Zainab, and the Caring uncle of Sakina, peace be upon them all.

When thinking of the flag bearer of Karbala, Abu Fadl al-Abbas alayhi salam, 1 thinks of heroism, bravery, dedication, altruism, and many more beautiful attributes.

He was the younger brother of Imam Hussein alayhi salam, and was known amongst the people as the moon of Bani Hashim, the tribe of the Prophet ﷺ.

The devotion of Abbas to Hussein was not just on the physical level, it was also based on the spiritual level.

This is reflected in his statement to Shimmer, 1 of the commanders of the Yazidi forces, who was actually related to Abbas through his mother, who was from the Qilibiyya tribe, while Hussein's mother was the daughter of the Prophet, as we all know, Shemar had come to Karbala with an aman, an assurance of protection or amnesty signed by Iraq's governor for Abbas and his 3 full brothers.

When Shemar presented that amnesty to Abbas, Abbas responded by saying, may God curse you on your amnesty.

You give us assurance of protection, but the son of the prophet's daughter has no amnesty?

Abbas bin Ali's message to us is quite clear.

We have to strengthen the ties of brotherhood with fellow Muslims and non-Muslims alike, irrespective of their race, color, language, or geographical location.

All other relationships must be synchronized with that.

We should be able to feel the pain of 1 another.

As the Prophet Muhammad once said, Muslims are like 1 body.

When 1 limb is injured, the hurt is felt by the entire body.

Between Abbas and Imam Hussein, this level of closeness and concern is symbolized in the words of Hussein.

When he heard Abbas calling for help as he was falling down from the horse, the Imam felt the pain and said, now my back has been broken and my options are few.

In Islamic ethics, courage is actually not defined by physical strength.

Courage means to have control over one's emotions and feelings and to use them only for the right cause.

A person who only relies on his physical strength and cannot control his emotions is not a courageous person.

While describing the Prophet and his true followers, Allah says in Surat Al-Faith, verse 29, Muhammad, the messenger of Allah and those who are with him, are firm against the enemies but soft with their own.

Now Abbas was not the slave of his desires or emotions.

Even his courage was linked to the spiritual relationship.

Abbas was very stern and firm when he confronted the enemies.

But he was very kind, compassionate, and caring towards the good people.

The children of Hussein and the clan of Ben-Hashem adored him.

After all, he was the favorite uncle of Sakina, the four-years-old daughter of Imam Hussein.

Unfortunately, what we see in the world today is that the tyrants, the kings, the generals who rule over Muslim countries behave in the opposite manner.

They are humble in front of the enemies but very bold when they deal with their own.

When Imam Hussein asked Abbas to try and get water for the children, Abbas confronted the enemy force, and he was very easily able to disperse them, very easily able to get access to the water.

Abbas entered the river, filled the water bag with water.

And on the way back, he had to pass through some palm trees, where the enemy was, of course, hiding behind, waiting to hit him from the back.

1 Yazidi soldier attacked him from behind in such a way that he lost his right hand, but Abbas courageously got hold of the water bag and consoled himself by the following verses.

By God, though you have severed my right hand, my faith I will surely forever defend.

I will defend the truthful leader of conviction, the grandson of the pure and truthful prophet.

Now we can see that loyalty is a very important quality, especially the loyalty towards one's faith and community.

Abbas's loyalty has become proverbial in the literature of Karbala.

On the eve of Ashura, when Imam Hussein asked his friends and family members to go away, to leave him, since the enemies were after his blood only, the first person to stand up and express his loyalty was Abbas bin Ali.

He said, and why should we abandon you so we may live after you?

And finally, on the day of Ashura, when Imam Hussein asked him to get water for the children, he very easily succeeded in gaining access to the stream.

He galloped into the stream, got down, filled the water bag, and as a person who had been thirsty for 3 days, Abbas could have very well quenched his thirst, but he did not do so.

Legally as well as morally, nothing prevented him from quenching his thirst there, but he did not do so.

It was his sense of loyalty to Hussein and the love for Hussein's children that prevented Abbas from drinking the water.

While filling the water, he recited the following verses, while Hussein is drinking the syrup of death, you are imbibing the coolness of joy.

Now the holding of standards in wars is the most significant position in armies.

Standards are given exclusively to the soldiers who enjoy special military abilities.

During the Battle of Attaf, the standard was in the hand of Abu Fadl al-Abbas, who preserved and held it from the beginning of the tragic journey from Medina to up to the last spark of his life.

Al-Abbas protected that standard so bravely and uniquely that he embraced it to his chest when his 2 hands were severed.

In more than 1 situation, al-Abbas asked his brother Imam al-Hussein for permission for fighting, but the imam used to say to him, you are the standard bearer of my army.

If you are martyred, my troops will separate.

It's also well known that standard bearers are chosen according to special qualifications.

The standard bearer must be accepted by everybody and must bear qualities such as courage, chivalry, and honor.

The standard bearers must also exert all efforts to keep the standard high.

For this reason, al-Abbas exerted unique efforts for keeping the standard high.

When his right hand was severed, he held the standard in the left, and this 1 was also severed.

He embraced the standard to his chest and held onto it until the last breath of his life.

This is why he was given the title of Hamal al-Liwa, which means the standard bearer.

Now when you look at the flag of Abbas, let it serve as a reminder of his loyalty to Hussain and his children.

That flag challenges us to be loyal and true to our faith and all of its values.

It urges the followers of Abbas to stand up against oppression, tyranny, injustice, in whatever shape or form that we see in our own times, all in the name of Allah and to serve the cause of Allah.

Now I must leave you with this mantra which I hope we can all incorporate into our lives in order to do better.

We shall fulfill our promise and defend this flag.

Give not our hand in falsehood, but look to Hussain, who gave his head for defending truth.

Allahumma salli ala Muhammad wa alihi Muhammad.

I kindly request my dear brothers to Please move forward so we make room for those who are entering.

The second salawat for the love of Abiy Abdullah Al-Hussain.

I seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Satan.

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Peace and blessings of Allah be upon you, O Messenger of Allah, and upon the oppressed

Sallallahu alayka Ya Sayyidi wa ya Mawla ya ya Aba Abdillah Ya Rahmatallahi al-wasi'ayya wa ya Baba Najati al-Ummah Allahumma wa ya baabana jaati al-umma Ya Ghareeb, Ya Shaheed Karbala I begin in the name of the Almighty God, the compassionate, the merciful, the 1 who has created everything in utmost perfection and may the peace and blessings of the Almighty God be upon his pure and beloved messenger, the peak of his creation, the symbol of humanity, the Holy Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, and his immaculate progeny of the Ahlul Bayt peace be upon them especially the leader of our time the awaited Savior Al-Imam Al-Mahdi Allah May Allah hasten his reappearance and make us all amongst his sincere and dedicated servants.

Respected brothers and sisters, As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala states in the Holy Quran in Surah Ibrahim verse

قَالَتْ رُسُلُهُمْ أَفِى اللَّهِ شَكٌ فَاطِرِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ The messengers said to their people, is there any doubt about the existence of Allah, the 1 who created the universe, the earth and the heavens?

Illuminate your heart and mind with a very loud salawat.

Indeed, there is nothing clearer than the existence of Allah SWT, than the existence of a creator who infused us with life Yet there are people who are struggling with this belief today more and more people Many of our youth are struggling with the belief in the existence of God.

Just like a fish that is surrounded by all that water, and many times you think, right, the fish does not even know what the water is.

But if it does not leave that water to experience what's out there, it may not know what water is.

With the effects of the existence of God.

But sometimes some people may struggle with this belief.

With all these misconceptions out there, how do I really know I have a creator Who created me?

And even more than that, how do I know that creator is the God that the Quran talks about?

But who said it's the creator that the Holy Quran talks about?

It's the Creator who has these names in the Quran the 99 names or the attributes that the Holy Quran gives us I want to achieve certainty that this is the Lord that I'm worshipping through logic Through my intellect I want to experience my Lord.

He sacrificed to awaken us to our Creator.

It is very important for us in this era to be very strong in our beliefs my dear brothers and sisters we have to articulate our belief in Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala our families our children you'd be surprised how many people are doubting the existence of God?

Many youth come to me, they privately tell me, Sayyid I'm struggling, I don't even know what to believe in anymore.

I don't even know if I really have a creator.

It is through these majalis of Abi Abdullah Al-Hussein Alayhi Salaam that we develop yaqeen and certainty in our Creator and trust me believe me when you find yaqeen in God everything else falls into place.

Sometimes you feel like your life is falling apart.

The belief in Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala grounds you.

The belief in Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala gives you with peace serenity.

Therefore it's very important that we have this discussion.

How can we truly come to know about the existence of our Lord beyond any doubt, with full certainty?

Now Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala has not left us without a built-in compass that takes us to him.

Do you know today scientists are confirming that our brains are programmed and wired to believe in God.

Evolutionary scientists who reject God they're admitting, they're confused, they're like we don't understand why the human brain is programmed to believe in a supernatural power, in some higher being, in some God.

We don't understand why, but our brain is programmed to believe in the existence of God.

That's the fitrah that Allah SWT has instilled in us.

1 very interesting experiment conducted by the University of Helsinki in Finland it demonstrated this fitra they brought a group of hardcore atheists now there are soft atheists and you've got those tough aggressive atheists.

The soft atheist says okay I don't really believe in God but maybe he exists maybe I don't know.

The aggressive atheist is the 1 who says no no no God does not exist for sure God is a fairy tale.

That's what they're saying to these children.

Some teachers this is what they're teaching children.

I'm sure a hundred percent there is no God.

So they got a group of these aggressive atheists and they wanted to experiment and see how they react.

So they put this device, these electrodes on their fingers, 2 of their fingers to sense their emotions.

Because when you're in a state of fear for instance when the emotion of fear kicks in your body releases certain hormones so you can actually detect that that's why they have lie detectors right Sometimes they can detect whether you're lying or not.

Based on how your body responds and how your body reacts.

They put this device on their hand and they told them we're going to say the following.

They said to the atheist, we are going to make the statement and ask you to repeat it.

I challenge this rock over here to kill my parents.

This rock over here can't do anything to my parents.

I challenge this rock to kill my parents.

They're like you're sure that the rock can't hurt your parents?

Like of course, of course the rock, what is the rock going to do to my parents?

Challenge the rock to kill your friends, to hurt your friends.

They said I challenge this rock to hurt my friends.

After they said that, they told them, okay, are you sure God does not exist we're sure a hundred percent God does not exist okay now challenge God say I challenge God to hurt me and to hurt my parents.

They could detect the fear using these devices.

I thought God was just a fairy tale just like this rock what's the difference between them how come you're not able to say it they concluded that there is something built inside the human being in your psychology in your brain that connects you with the existence of Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala and that's the beautiful fitrah That's the beautiful fitrah My dear brothers and sisters these days we need to reflect we want signs To bring us closer to Allah subhanahu wa'ta'ala Science and we keep saying this over and over again science is the best ally to religion.

I challenge anyone To bring any belief system that we have based on solid Quran And the Ahlulbayt alayhumusalam and tell me that this defies science Everything we believe in is confirmed by research It's confirmed by science.

You just have to know how to analyze the world around you.

Islam tells you singing and all these types of haram music is not good for you.

It will bring you poverty, spiritual poverty.

Like a young man who once made fun of this, like say, do you really believe in this stuff, in these hadiths?

I told him, Astaghfirullah, what do you mean?

He says, prolonged exposure to music and singing, yurithul faqr, it brings you spiritual poverty.

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God Through the Eyes of Husayn | Muharram 1444 Night 8 | Sayed Mohammad Baqer Al-Qazwini